I posted this 55 three years ago but since it's Chanukah I decided to put it up again. We have some friends who have shared their holiday with us. We celebrated it together many years. I was delighted for my kids to learn about it and enjoy it with friends. I won't totally rehash the old count the same way I did the 55 but I will count a sharing atmosphere where I work.

I am not the only person at work who has been recently plagued by numerous difficult circumstances. There seems to be a rash of it among my coworkers. Two other coworkers have cars that keep falling apart like mine. Two have immediate family members with serious health issues.Five of us are currently receiving treatment at our own office for recent injuries. With so many people under all sorts of stress you might think I work with a bunch of surly people and in fact contribute to the sour mood myself. We are all capable complainers at times but for the most part none of us linger in that for too long. We can all tell when someone comes in after a particularly rough patch and we all cut the one having a hard time some slack. We listen to each other, support each other, make each other laugh in spite of the crap going on. On our lunch break you generally find us giving each other various necessary treatments, which on one hand is kind of hilarious (Hey Doc, can ya crack me? Sure...can you give my shoulder a combo? Yep, right after I hook up Jane to the decompression table....once she finishes the deep muscle work on John.). On the other hand it's really a relief to be working in a place that takes good care of its patients and where we all take good care of each other. It's also really count-worthy that we don't take advantage of each other in an opportunistic way. After the rough week I had (and the rougher week one of the other girls had), and when I consider the hell-hole I used to work in (where they just didn't give a damn about anything but the bottom line) I just really want to count the sharing of burdens in a caring manner that goes on among my coworkers.

It's always comforting to know people can rise above as well as sink beneath their burdens-and worse case,as the immortal Boss once said "You got to learn to live with what you can't rise above.." Enjoyed your 55 and the better side of us human beans it shows.

Now that's a niiiice ode to Hannukah.. a li'l bit of history, a dash of miracle and a dazzle of those lovely lights... A very Happy Hannukah to you, and to your friends too!! I hope things get better for them.. soon!